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Philippines recovery to ‘take a while’ – survey
More than half of respondents in the survey of a life insurance company believe that the Philippine economy would take a longer time to bounce back from the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic.
At a briefing on Wednesday, Melissa Henson, senior vice president and chief marketing officer of Manulife Philippines, revealed that “60 percent of the people we spoke [to] worry that the economy will take a while to recover.”
This finding is included in Manulife’s “Understanding Filipino Sentiments Toward Health and Critical Illness” study. For the study, the insurance firm polled over 500 Filipinos across the country between January and July.
During the period, the Philippines plunged into a technical recession after domestic output fell by a record 16.5 percent in the second quarter and 0.7 percent in the first. This brought the country’s economic contraction to 9 percent in the first half.
The government has an adjusted assumption of a 5.5-percent contraction for the year.
Henson said the study also found that financial worries have a greater impact on Filipinos’ sentiments toward protecting themselves from critical illness, especially during the pandemic.
Forty-eight percent of respondents said they believe it would be difficult to get health care during the crisis.
As of Wednesday, the number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in the country soared by 2,833 to 294,591, of which 58,217 are active, according to data from the Department of Health. Of the total, 231,373 have recovered and 5,091 did not.
These fears and concerns fuel demand for insurance products, with 77 percent saying they planned to buy insurance, mostly life and health-related products, in the next 18 months.
“The uncertainty brought by Covid-19 has created greater awareness and appreciation for insurance products, as it underscored the importance of being prepared for unexpected illness,” Henson said.
“This study reinforced the need to continue educating Filipinos on their physical and financial health so they can build better habits, make better financial decisions and live every day better,” she added.
Source: https://www.manilatimes.net/2020/09/24/business/business-top/ph-recovery-to-take-a-while-survey/771349/